Why is 32-bit Software/ OS referred to as x86? Explained here..

The term x86 simply refers to a family of processors and the “instruction set” they all use.
It doesn’t actually say anything specific about data sizes. x86 actually has three different subsets: x86-16 (16-bit), x86-32 (32-bit) and x86-64 (64-bit).

The 32-bit version of x86 became so common that eventually the term "x86" by itself was known to be the 32-bit iteration. The newer 64-bit version can be referred to as it is above, but far more often is simply called "x64", which can understandably be confusing to someone who doesn't have a lot of knowledge concerning computer hardware, as it sounds like a step backwards!

It's because of this that 32-bit softwares and OS are referred to as x86. Hope this post clears the air on this issue! :Laie_75C: